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Friday, June 19th
Monthly General Meeting

The Rio Rancho Astronomical Society will host its general monthly meeting on Friday June 19th at Rainbow Park Observatory located at 301 Southern Blvd. in Rio Rancho (Behind Rainbow Pool).

Special Guest Speaker will discuss What Happened to Pluto? Unless you’re older than 96 or younger than 20, you were born in a solar system with nine planets. But in 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) adopted a definition of “planet” that excluded Pluto, restoring the count to eight. What prompted this controversial decision? The answer may surprise you!

Rick Fienberg is an astronomer, educator, and science communicator. Now retired, he served as Editor-in-Chief of Sky & Telescope and then as Press Officer of the American Astronomical Society. The International Astronomical Union named asteroid 9983 Rickfienberg in his honor. Rick observes and photographs the sky at Running Hare Observatory in his backyard in Placitas.

The meeting begins at 7:30 PM and a stargaze will follow the meeting, weather permitting.

M-101, the Pinwheel Galaxy, taken May 16, 2006, by RRAS Member Jim Meassick